


Your Knight in Shining Armor

by Thisusernameistakenagain



Category: Women's Soccer RPF
Genre: Alternate Universe - Medieval, F/F, Fluff and Angst
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-05-08
Updated: 2016-06-09
Packaged: 2018-06-07 01:56:56
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 4
Words: 12,899
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6780694
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Thisusernameistakenagain/pseuds/Thisusernameistakenagain
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Tobin and Julie are American knights that have come to help the princesses Alexandra and Christen escape England. But first, they must gain the trust of the princesses and their father.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter One

**Author's Note:**

> So this chapter was written by Izzylerd and (poorly) edited by me, Thisusernameistakenagain. Essentially how this collaboration will work is that Izzylerd will write one chapter then I'll write the other and so on. I hope you enjoy this chapter!

"Noble Knights, you are brought here today from around the world to earn the right to stand next to our princesses, Alexandra Patricia Morgan and Christen Annemarie Press."  
"There are one hundred of you, but only two of you will make it through the tests. Those who don't will be sent home."  
"We wish you the best of luck, dinner will be at 7 sharp. You will meet your princesses and the King and Queen there."  
  
////  
  
You walk at the back of the group with Tobin, slowly taking in your surroundings and mapping out the castle in your head. You've never seen such big buildings before. The biggest building back in America was a post office in town, and it was only three stories.  
England is way different than America. You thought since America came from England they'd be mostly the same but, you were totally wrong. There were Royal Guards at every corner, the streets were filled with people, and it seemed like it rained all the time. If anything, it was the complete opposite of America, besides mostly everyone speaking English.  
"What kind of tests do you think they have planned?" Tobin whispers to you below all the clanking of the knights’ armor. Her slight French accent cut through her words.

"Probably physical ones, hand to hand combat, sword fighting, hell they might even make us duel on horses"  
You and Tobin are the only women here, and you're surprised that the King and Queen even allowed you two to be considered. But, by some miracle, you made it. Now you're in a room full of men who all want the same thing you do, the hands of the princesses.  
You don't want their hands just for the wealth or the good life style, though. When you and Tobin were taken in by the company wanting to get the princesses out of England, you instantly fell in love. They had intricate paintings of both of them, and if Christens beauty didn't grab your attention, then the air of importance she held definitely did.  
You follow the group up the large steps to the main hall of the castle, gazing up at the intricate window designs. It's was quite impressive. You visited the cathedral yesterday and the architecture was nothing like you've ever seen before.  
You walk into the grand hall, both of you pulling your helmets on before the princesses come into view.  
"Holy shit."  
"Julie!"  
"Sorry."  
You both stare up at the princess on their thrones and your attention is immediately drawn to Christen. Neither of them are dressed like a typical princess, so you're starting to wonder if this family is just relaxed or this is all a joke. You linger on her anyways, watching her play with the sleeves of her black robes. You turn to Alex, who's wearing a light pink robe with golden necklaces hanging around her neck.  
"They're beautiful", Tobin whispers next to you. "Who's the other one?"  
She's sitting on a lower throne, but she still holds an air of importance. She has long brown hair and her face is dotted with freckles. Green and white steward robes hang loosely on her body.  
"Their Irish cousin. I think her name is Kelley."  
"Do you want to befriend her?"  
"Only if she wants to befriend us."  
  
////  
  
You know instantly who the two women are when the knights walk into the room. They're both trailing at the back of the group, their faces concealed by their metal helmets.  
Your eyes trail over the taller knights body, lingering on the red and blue emblem planted on the left side of her chest plate. Her armor was mostly metal, save for the red cape on her shoulders. A light blue line was trimmed into the side of the cape, five six-pointed stars lining the top of it. Her helmet was painted a light blue with a dark red mark on the right side.  
The armor fits her well. It's not too big or too puny, and you're impressed that America has such materials to give their knights, but you've never been to America, so you wouldn't know.  
They both have the same armor, except for their capes. The other has on a black cape with a red, thorn like design. A single rose is planted on her chest plate, and her helmet has a single red line going down her left eye.  
"I can't believe father actually let women come to this,” you say to your sister.  
"I can't either. I'm glad he's accepting of it, if he were anyone else we'd be burning at the stake or in prison."  
"Let's just hope the men don't embarrass them."  
You both laugh, "This is going to be the longest month of my life."  
"Oh, Kelley! Hey!"  
Kelley throws herself into the throne next to yours, leaning her cheek into her hand. "Hey."  
"What's got you so down?" Alex asks.  
"I haven't seen Hope in three days. Her father has been working her really hard lately, so she rarely ever has free time to come see me."  
"Being a black smith is hard Kelley, but I'm sure you'll get to see her soon."  
"Not with all these knights here. Now she'll be even busier."  
Your eyebrows furrow as you try and think of a way to get them to see each other. You smile to yourself when you figure something out.  
"Father, can we take the knights out to the Solo Blacksmiths? I think it would help the knights get used to their surroundings."  
Your father smiles proudly at you, standing from his throne. "Gentlemen and women, my daughters will be taking you into the town after an evaluation. You'll meet the local blacksmith there."  
"What's this evaluation you speak of?" a knight, you don't know which one, shouts out.  
"You'll state your name and where you came from to my daughters. From there, they will decide who will be leaving tonight and who will be staying."  
Chatter moves through the hall and your stomach starts to churn as the stewards start forming the lines.  
"Are we keeping the women just for the sake of them?" Alex asks you.  
"We're keeping them, but not just for the sake of them.” You move your gaze to the girls in the back of the line, "I have faith we'll enjoy their company."  
  
////  
  
You've gone through more than half of the line, sending out most of them. Some of them you kept simply because they had nice faces.  
"Dom Dwyer, English America", a shorter man says as he steps up to the block.  
"We don't want you, but we have a friend who might be interested in someone like you,” Christen smirks next to you.  
"May I ask for her name?" He asks politely.  
"Sydney Leroux, she is a French Canadian. Dawn can take you to her after the evaluation is over."  
He smiles largely. "Thank you my ladies"  
You both smile at him as he bows, quickly moving to the side lines.  
"Servando Carrasco, Mexico", a tall, built knight walks up to the block. He's smirking slyly and you already hate it. He seems like one of those knights that thinks they're better than the rest.  
"No."  
"Yes."  
You whip your head to your father. "What?"  
"He stays."  
"I thought this was our choice?" You ask incredulously.  
"Yes, but I think this fine man has a chance, so he stays."  
You narrow your eyes and puff out a breath, turning back to Servando, "Fine, whatever. You stay."  
He smirks even more, causing you to scoff.  
You grow impatient as the men carry on, eager to get to the back of the line where you know the women are. You can tell Christen is eager also, since neither of you expected your special request to actually happen.  
"How many more do we have?" Christen asks Kelley tiredly.  
"Maybe ten? I don't know, there's too many men in here."

You laugh at your cousins statement, turning back to the next man who's stepped up.  
You go through at least fifteen more, until the two women finally step up to the block. Everything is still and silent as they step up. You tilt your head as they pull their helmets off slowly.  
You practically gasp when they reveal their faces.  
"Julie Johnston, English America", the blonde says, her blue eyes glowing in the light of the castle.  
"Tobin Heath, French America", the brunette says. she pulls your attention the most.  
You almost melt at her sharp jawline and large plump lips. She's gazing at you, a small smile on her lips. It causes you to smile unconsciously, your heart racing as you stare at her intently.  
They both shift, moving to kneel down and lower their heads to both of you. The men still in the room gasp and mutter, none of them had kneeled before you.  
"That's a brave thing to do lads, kneeling before your princesses,” your father says.  
"Any lady of royalty deserves the utmost respect from anyone trying to gain their hand, your majesty", Tobin says politely, bowing her head to your father also.  
You're taken aback, you didn't think America showed this much respect to their leaders. It impresses you to say the least.  
"And, if I may your majesty, we appreciate your consideration of us greatly,” Julie says, also bowing her head to your father.  
Your eyes trail over her, noticing a scar underneath her left eye. You think she's attractive, but she's not exactly your type so you look at Christen who's staring intensely at her. A small smile is settled on her face, which causes you to smile.  
You definitely have faith in the two.  
  
////  
  
"You think that impressed them enough?" Julie asks you as you walk the crowded streets of the town.  
"It definitely gained us some enemies.” you nod your head to Servando and a group he's gathered. All of them are glaring intensely at you.  
"Not our fault if we're better than them."  
You nod your head in agreement, tightening your grip on your saber as you both continue walking to the blacksmith.  
  
////  
  
"So we'll distract the men and her father while you hang with her for a little while, okay?"  
You smile brightly and nod quickly.  
"Also, try not to make a lot of noise. We're trying to keep you together, not break you up."  
Your heart starts beating faster as you near the shop, hearing the clanking of metal and swords coming from the large building.  
You pick up your pace a little, the large group of men and your best friends following behind you. You pass by Hope's father who's working intensely on a broad sword, too busy to notice you slip inside the shop. You walk down the dimly lit hall, looking around the empty shop for any sign of Hope.  
"Hope?" You call out and you hear something shift upstairs. Before Hope has the chance to come down the stairs, you run up them, stopping her large figure in her doorway.  
"Kelley,” she sighs and wraps her arms around your waist, picking you up and spinning you around the room.  
You laugh contagiously and wrap your arms around her neck, content with being with her right now.  
"I missed you,” she says as she sets you down.  
"I missed you more,” you bite your lip and pull her down to you, crashing your lips together.  
You both sigh into the kiss, your lips moving together perfectly like so many times before. Fireworks go off everywhere inside of you after not seeing her for so long. You love the taste and the feel of her against you, her long slender hands moving up and down your back.  
"What are you doing here?" Hope mumbles against your lips.  
"The knights arrived at the castle, Alex and Christen brought them here to get their swords sharpened for tomorrow."  
"Giving me more work, huh?"  
"It was their idea so I could see you.” You both smile so much you can't kiss anymore.  
You lean your forehead against hers, trailing your hand over her chest.  
"When is your father going to stop giving you so much work?"  
Hope sighs, "I don't know. If the knights are here you know that's more work, along with the army getting prepared."  
"Have you thought about getting anyone to help?"  
"We don't make enough to pay someone for work, Kelley. You know that."  
"If my parents actually let me inherit things, I'd help you out, but I'm a sitting duck until then."  
"I wouldn't let you help anyways. You've got to learn to be smart with inheritance my love."  
Your mouth twists in thought, an idea going through her head. "What if I could get my uncle to let you work as the castle blacksmith?"  
"The castle has a blacksmith?"  
"Not yet,” you wink, kissing Hope quickly and running down the stairs.  
"I love you!" You yell up the stairs.  
"I love you too Kels,” Hope chuckles, it makes your heart flutter.  
  
////  
  
"Are they even knights? They dress more like noblemen.” You think for a second, "Noblewomen?"  
"Have you been paying attention the past 12 years of your life? They're wealthy and trained, of course they dress like noblewomen."  
You roll your eyes, tightening your grip on the hilt of your sword. Yesterday went by faster than you expected, and you didn't get any time to speak with Julie after walking to the blacksmith. Then Kelley asked you about Hope being the castle blacksmith and you still don't know how to ask your father. There's already a forge in the back of the castle near the training fields, all it would take was a couple men to clean it up and two extra plates during meals.  
"What do you think Father has in store for us today?"  
"Obviously fighting. He probably wants us to see who can fight and who can't so we can narrow it down even more."  
You roll your eyes and both of you fall back into your comfortable silence, focusing on the clanking of your armor and boots against the stone hall. You walk down the arch until it opens up to the training field where the fifty or so men already are.  
It's fall in England, so the leaves are starting to turn different colors and fall off the trees, creating a thin layer on the ground. The leaves crunch under your feet and grab the attention of the group ahead.  
"Gentlemen, and women, we welcome you to the first day of your tests. Today we'll take things slow by starting to evaluate your skills in combat and so on. Try not to embarrass yourselves,” you explain to the group.  
You notice a couple of the men shrink away, while Servando and his group smirk and pump their chests out at you and your sister. She scoffs next to you, and you can't really blame her for not liking him. You'd want him gone too if your father hadn’t insisted.  
"Split up into groups. We don't care who you're with, so long as you don't kill each other."  
Alex turns to you, "Let's see what they can do."  
You smirk at the thought of showing them what a real fight looks like.  
  
////  
  
"I swear they think of us as jokes. Women don't usually fight, right? So why should we be any better? These damn fools won't know what will hit them,” you growl out as you and Julie practice.  
"Tobin, could you channel your anger on anything else but me?" Julie whines as you punctuate each sentence with a swing.  
"Désole", you say sincerely, controlling the speed of your blade so that it doesn’t crash down on Julie.  
You hope you both look like you actually know what you're doing. You can't count the days you spent practicing against each other back in America. Swinging a blade came naturally to you, so luckily your parents were smart enough to enroll you in the academy. That's where you met Julie. Both of you were at the top of the class and the instructors’ favorites. You didn't even know you'd get chosen to go on this mission.  
You weren't complaining though, you get to show off in front of a bunch of egotistical men and, maybe, earn the princess’ hands. Which doesn't seem very high on the list of things that might happen, Christen and Alexandra haven't moved from the other side of the practicing field since they all started practicing. But, that's not the point of the mission. The point is to get the princesses safely out of England before the war officially starts. A month is not a lot of time for you to gain the trust of royalty.  
"I can hear the stampede running in your head, Tobin. What's going on?"  
You sigh heavily, "We have a month to gain their trust. That's not a lot of time, and right now isn't exactly showing they even want us to stay. I'm still not sure why we were the chosen ones anyway."  
"Because the academy thinks we can get this done. We don't necessarily have to marry the girls, we're just here to get them out safely."  
Julie's right, you don't have to fall in love with them. You don't exactly want to either, being in love with a girl in these times is difficult and dangerous.  
"Alright, gather around everyone. I hope you actually practiced enough since you'll be dueling with someone of our choice. The winner gets to sit out and watch while the loser keeps going until he or she wins. Understood?"  
  
////  
  
"I didn't think knight’s robes could look that good on a woman,” Christen says next to you.  
You chuckle, looking over to the other side of the circle where Julie and Tobin are standing and watching. You haven't really noticed what Tobin is wearing until now and, yes, Christen is definitely right.  
Tobin has her hair in a loose ponytail, sporting a black and red tricorne with a matching knight robes. Instead of crosses, like the Templars wear, she has roses stitched into the material. Her and Julie are both wearing their capes and hoods, shiny black boots and leather holsters for their swords fitting perfectly onto their bodies. Tobin looks good, extremely good, you can't help but lick your lips at the sight of her standing there.  
Her eyes shift slowly over to your side of the circle, locking gazes with you. You're staring at each other for a couple seconds before she breaks out into a small smile, slightly tilting her head down in a nod. You smirk and nod back, a deep blush crawling up your neck with the way her eyes trail down your body. You know dueling armor isn't exactly princess attire, but you feel pretty great in it when Tobin raises an eyebrow and the corner of her lip turns up.  
"Don't look now, but Tobin is definitely staring at you."  
"Oh I know."  
  
////  
  
You had to admit, Christen could definitely rock dueling armor.  
It was simple armor really, white cotton shirt, leather chest piece, combat boots, and black tights.  
But she still looked good.  
"Julie and Nima, please step to the middle of the circle.” Christens voice gains your attention.  
Tobin looks at you, confused, but you just shrug and move to the middle of the circle where a skinny, tan boy is standing. He kind of looks terrified, his shaggy brown hair is hiding most of his face as he looks anywhere but at you. You're shorter than him by a couple inches, but you have a lot more muscle and better armor. It almost makes you laugh. Christen is obviously trying to play some kind of game. You know she knows you have a lot of experience and this boy looks like he hasn't touched a sword in his life. You don't even know why he's still here.  
"You can begin whenever you're ready,” Alex says.  
You give Tobin one last look, seeing her smile and nod. You smirk, straightening your posture and swiftly pulling the thin saber out of its holster, pointing it at Nima.  
"Ready when you are,” you say with sarcasm dripping off your tongue.  
He narrows his eyes at you, his jaw tensing at your attitude, and pulls his sword out. "Give me all you've got, woman."  
You're taken aback by his slur, your jaw and muscles tensing. You hate being put down for being a woman ever since you started at the Academy. Everyone always made fun of you for it, so you worked harder to kick everyone's asses, but his comment isn't helping the anger you already feel. You take a deep breath, twirling your sword at him and stepping back.  
He gets the message and lunges toward you, keeping all of his body open, but you don't take him down just yet. That'd just be embarrassing. You side step his attack, twisting his broadsword and hitting it out of his hand with your thin saber. A couple men laugh and you see Tobin smiling at you. She knows your capabilities.  
You turn your back to Nima, kicking the dirt up off the ground as you listen to him angrily pick his sword up and turn back to you. You turn your gaze lazily up to the sky, waiting for him to come at you again.  
You can tell when he's right behind you by the expressions of the men in front of you. You laugh and shield your left side with your saber, satisfied with your judgement when your saber hits his sword. You swiftly turn and lift your sword up, throwing Nima off guard. Both his arms fly up but he keeps a grip on his sword as he stumbles back.  
"Is that all you got?" He growls through his teeth, walking to the other side of the circle, twirling his sword clumsily at you.  
You chuckle, twirling yours much more skillfully at him, "Just the beginning, pretty boy."  
There's a wave of 'oohs' in the crowd and Nima’s facial expression is turning angry. You know he's about to get reckless and stupid, so you internally ready yourself as he starts running towards you. Instead of swinging crazily at you he stands his ground and goes at you, but you side step his attacks and push his sword away swiftly, twirling your saber around his sword to confuse him. His brows furrow and you catch him off guard again, so you start attacking instead of defending.

Your brain switches to offensive mode and it's like second nature as your feet shuffle forward, your chest turning outward so you don't leave anything open and force your saber into his sword. It's funny how your thin saber does so much damage to his large broadsword, but that's just your skills. You step forward with each hit, noticing how he's starting to wear out at deflecting your attacks. You start switching to his sides instead of straight at him, finding a weakness in his defense and twisting your saber so that his sword falls out of his hands. Everything is silent as his sword hits the ground, the tip of your saber almost touching the center of his neck.  
"Never underestimate the power of a woman,” you state simply, moving your saber to your side in your resting stance.  
You turn your gaze to Christen, who's gazing at you curiously. A small smile is settled on her lips, her eyebrow slightly raised.  
"Impressive, Julie, now let's see how you do in hand to hand."  
You don't even register what Christen is saying before your saber is kicked out of your hand and you feel a fist on your chin, knocking you to the ground. The men gasp slightly as you hit the ground hard. You feel slightly dazed as Nima stands above you, his chest heaving heavily.  
You groan and stand up slowly, running your tongue along your teeth as you taste blood on your lips. You spit the mouthful of blood onto the ground before rising to your feet. You can already feel an aching pain, but it's nothing compared to pain you've felt before.  
"Alright, you wanna fight like that? We'll fight like that,” you mutter, pulling your hood off and throwing it to Tobin.  
"Julie are you sure you want to-"  
"He'll get a fair fight,” you snap at Tobin, "Actually, I think I still have more of an advantage."  
You smirk at Nima, watching his face turn furious again. He lets out a battle cry of sorts and rushes toward you, throwing his fists everywhere. You scoff at his childish attitude, grabbing his arms as they fly at you and twisting them, kicking into his stomach so that he falls back into the ground.  
He quickly stands up, crouching as he runs so that his arms wrap around your waist. You know he's trying to take you to the ground but you're as still as a rock, raising an eyebrow amusingly at his efforts to take you down.  
"Alright, pretty boy,” you sigh after a couple seconds and wrap your arms around his neck, pushing him down and flipping him over.  
You both hit the ground hard, but it's more on him as you quickly wrap your leg over his midsection, keeping your arms around his neck. He's lying on the ground completely and you have him locked in place.  
"Okay, that's enough! Julie, you can go to the dining hall. Nima, I hope you still have some fight left in you."  
You immediately release him and step back, pulling him up, "Good fight Nima, just learn to keep your anger controlled."  
"Yeah, thanks", he groans and holds his side, walking to his sword and picking it up.  
Tobin walks to you and hands you your cape. You swing it dramatically over your shoulders and lock it into place. You walk past Christen, giving her a sly wink as you make your way to the dining hall.  
You don't have to look to see the blush creeping over her cheeks.


	2. Chapter Two

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Alex takes charge of the dueling circle, Tobin is next to fight, Julie gets her wounds cleaned, the healer and one of the princesses' handmaidens is introduced, Kelley's logic is the best.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So this chapter was written by me (Thisusernameistakenagain) which is why it's shorter than Izzylerd's. I hope you enjoy it!

As soon as Nima has slipped back into the crowd of knights, Christen leaves to tend to Julie in the dining hall. You’re jealous that she’s able to leave while you’re stuck here with all of these meatheads, so you decide to have some fun while she’s gone.  
“Tobin, you’re next,” you announce to the group.  
“Yes, your majesty,” she responds with a nod of her head.  
“I’ll fight her!” you hear Servando yell as he steps forward out of the crowd.  
You step into the center circle and remove your hood. “No you won’t.”  
Tobin’s demeanor changes from confident to nervous when she sees you remove your long sword from its sheath. It’s a nice sword, your favorite, with a white grip and silver cross-guard. Both the grip and cross-guard have purple jewels set in them. The pommel was a light blue cross encircled by purple and white. You couldn’t have asked Hope for a better sword.  
You and Tobin circle around each other for a few moments, each of you waiting for the perfect time to strike. It doesn’t take long for the men around the two of you to start telling you to fight already, so you give them what they want. You charge at Tobin just so that you aren’t circling each other for so long, but you’re surprised to see how effortlessly she blocks your attack. You look up at each other for a split second and end up caught in each other’s gaze. Tobin’s eyes and jawline give you butterflies in your stomach.  
////  
Fighting Alex makes you nervous at first, but once you actually start fighting her your head clears and your sabre simply becomes an extension of your arm. Your defensive and offensive movements come so naturally to you, and for a moment you think you can see Alex starting to sweat. Alex can certainly hold her own with her speed, but you know way more attacks and maneuvers.   
“Is that all you’ve got, your highness?” you taunt her.  
She looks up at you with a slight smirk on her face.   
“Nowhere near,” she says as she really starts attacking.  
It’s everything you can do to defend yourself from her flurry of attacks, but you do. You kick yourself for thinking she would go down that easily, so you wait. You wait for the perfect time to strike by trying to analyze her fighting movements. She catches you in the ribs a few times and each time she knocks the wind out of you, but you get back up each time. You ignore the sharp pains in your ribs and, after a few minutes of half-hearted attacks on your part, you notice a pattern in the way she fights. You strike when you see she’s getting tired.  
Alex was fighting by using a series of movements over and over again. There were enough movements where it was hard to tell she was doing it, but you pick up on her little game. You let her continue her movements for a few more moments before you disarm her. With your sword at her throat, she gives you a smirk and you swear you can see her eyes darken.  
The men are staring at you as if they’ve seen a ghost. They’d all enjoyed the show that the two of you put on (two beautiful women sword fighting is something any man would pay to see), but they didn’t expect you to actually beat one of the princesses of England. They expected you to get your ass kicked.  
“Good work, Tobin. You can head to the dining hall with Julie,” Alex tells you.  
“Thank you, your highness.” You nod your head in respect before making your way to the dining hall.  
Before you can leave, however, Alex grabs you by the shoulder and whispers something in your ear.  
“You can call me Alex.”  
////  
When Nima first hit you in the mouth and chin, you were pissed off. Now that Christen was sitting in front of you, cleaning your split lip and the small gash on the right side of your head, you’re glad he’d been such an asshole. Her eyes captivate you more than anything, and you swear her smile is made of pure sunshine. You feel electricity flow through the tips of her fingers each time she goes to clean the blood from your face and, despite the pain, it puts a small smile on your face.   
“Whatca thinking about?” Christen asks you with a playful smirk on her face.  
“Nothing,” you respond without hesitation. Christen knows full and well she’s why you’re smiling.  
“Are you sure? I’d like to know what makes you happy.”  
This catches your attention and you respond by saying, “In that case, I’m thinking about you.”  
“That’s what I thought.”  
Christen finishes cleaning up your wounds just before Tobin walks in. She looks very worn out and you can tell she’d been fighting for a while. Christen gives her a knowing look before smiling your way one last time and going back out to the dueling circle with Alex.   
“I suggest you go to the castle healer for your broken ribs,” Christen says to Tobin on the way out.  
“Thanks,” Tobin responds.  
She makes her way over to where you’re sitting and smirks at you. You figure you’re not hiding your attraction to Christen very well. You know you’re right before she even opens her mouth to speak.  
“You’re not very subtle, you know that, right?”  
You internally groan at the rhetorical question. Of course you know you’re not subtle, Tobin knows that from when you had a crush on her two years ago, and you make sure to work on that.  
“Christen wasn’t being subtle either,” you whine in response.  
“Oh, I know.” Tobin gives you another smirk before putting her hand out for you to grab. “Let’s go to the healer. Maybe they can fix all of…” she motions her hand over your face, “…this.”  
You scoff at her joke and brush off her hand, standing up alone. You can hear her chuckling behind you as you walk out of the dining hall and to the healer.  
////  
You’re busy mixing herbs when you feel Kristie wrap her arms around you and you let out a sigh of comfort. Her arms have always felt so much like home, but you have to be careful not to get caught. It’s a miracle you weren’t burned at the stake for being a witch, but if they found out you love Kristie they’d kill you for sure. Even worse, they’d kill her too.  
“Shouldn’t you be with the princesses?” You cringe upon hearing your accent. It didn’t matter when you grew up in Scotland, but you feel like it sounds improper compared to everyone else’s so you change it to blend in. “You can’t keep telling them you’re sick so you can come see me. They’ll find out you’re lying sooner or later.”  
Kristie turns you around and you see the slight pout on her face. “Steph, why do you always do that?”  
You know exactly what she’s talking about but you decide to play dumb. “Do what?”  
“That thing where you change your accent. I like your real accent.”  
Her words make you feel all warm and happy inside. You know no one really cares about your accent, but you do. It makes you feel better when you’re not speaking with such harsh sounding words.  
“I know you do, but I don’t.”  
This earns a frown from Kristie and you’re about to lean in to kiss her when you hear footsteps coming down the hall. You don’t think you’ve ever separated from her that fast, but you’re also usually in a more private setting. Two women dressed in dueling armor make their way into the infirmary and you’re slightly confused. You overheard that there were two women who were trying to win the princesses over, but you thought they were rumors.   
“How can I help you?” you say, easily hiding your accent now that you’re thinking about it.  
Your question is sort of a stupid one since you see the one with the light brown hair clutching her sides. The blonde one has a split lip and what looks to be a cut on the side of her head, but you decided to tend to the brunette first. You’re happy that neither of them have questioned Kristie’s presence.  
“Broken ribs?” you ask the brunette. She gives you a nod and you motion for her to sit down.  
You don’t remember getting your powers, but you do remember that you’ve only really used them for healing. It started out with small cuts and somehow you worked your way up to broken bones, later even learning how to bring people back from the dead. They never stayed alive for very long though because not even the most powerful witches or wizards can cheat death. You found that out the hard way the first time you ever met Kristie.  
The bone healing process was, thankfully, not a very painful one so you placed your hands around the brunette’s ribs and they were healed moments later. Next you walk over to the blonde and place a thumb on her split lip. When the wound there has closed, you move on to the gash on the side of her head. Before you know it, they thank you and are out of there just as fast as they came.  
You’re slightly confused because you usually get weird looks from the men who come in to be healed, yet those two didn’t even bat an eye. If you didn’t know better, you’d say that they’d seen magic like that before. You don’t question it though, and neither does Kristie, so you go back to what you were doing earlier, kissing Kristie.  
////  
You miss Hope. Even though you saw her just last night, it was only for a moment and you want nothing more than to see her again. You consider going out with Christen and Alex to watch the knights duel, but you don’t really feel like dealing with that many hot and sweaty men. So, naturally, you do the logical thing and break some of the arrows in the quiver hanging by your bed.  
In hindsight this is probably a really stupid idea with a war brewing and all, but it gives you a reason to go see Hope. It’s almost lunch time at the castle so it’s the best time to go because, chances are, Hope will be eating lunch soon too. You figure you can always get food later (or eat some of Hope’s). You almost feel bad for giving her more work than she already has. Almost.  
Breaking your arrows without gloves on your hands proves to be a bad idea since the wood splinters and gets stuck in your hand. You even manage to cut yourself with some rather sharp pieces, but it’s worth it. You’ll have to go see Steph later, but for now you settle for wrapping some cloth over your hands. Six arrows and several curse words later, you’re slipping out of the castle and past the guards to head into town.  
You find Hope out behind the blacksmith shop with a plate of food in her hand. She’s quietly eating alone so you come over and sit next to her. You startle her just a bit because she wasn’t expecting you to show up and you laugh, earning a playful shove from the taller brunette.  
“You scared me,” Hope mutters with food still in her mouth.  
“I know,” you say as you tear off a piece of her bread and pop it in your mouth.   
She looks at you with a small pout before you look around and give her a quick kiss. It’s when she looks down at you and smiles that she notices the cloths wrapped around your hands and the six broken arrows. With the look of disapproval she’s giving you, you can tell she’s noticed the reason you’re there.  
“I needed a reason to see you,” you explain.  
She rolls her eyes at you and smiles. “You could have just broken one.”  
“That would have been too easy.”  
You sit there in silence while Hope finishes eating, stealing some food from her plate every so often. She sets her plate down on the ground beside her before pulling you in for a hug. You rest your head in the crook of her neck and smile. Only you could turn the big bad Hope Solo into a softy.  
“My father is out of town for the night, if you want to stay here.”  
“I’d love to.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A recap of the nationalities of our current characters:
> 
> Alex, Christen, Kristie: English  
> Tobin: French American  
> Julie: English American  
> Steph: Scottish  
> Kelley: Irish  
> Hope: Italian (it's not mentioned but she is)


	3. Chapter Three

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tobin and Julie are confronted, Alex really wants to see Tobin, Kelley and Hope take a bath, Christen looks for Julie, and Steph spends the night with Kristie.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter was written by Izzylerd and edited by me. I hope you enjoy!

"You never told me who you fought, was it Servando?"  
"No, it was Alex."  
"Woah, she broke your ribs?"  
"Yeah, but I almost cut her throat open."  
  
You smirk happily, continuing down the corridor with Julie. You just ate dinner with the rest of the knights and the princesses, but you mostly stayed near a corner with Julie since most of the men have taken to hating the both of you. Neither of you mind though, jealousy is always a fun factor to play with when you're earning the trust of a king and his daughters. And jealousy will definitely keep the other men from focusing, which means you and Julie have more of a chance at earning their hand.  
  
You're about to walk up the steps to the rooms when the sound of multiple boots hitting the ground draws your attention. You and Julie stop right before you hit the corner to find Servando and a couple other men practically marching down the steps. Servando comes right up to you, which is weird because he always keeps at least 20 feet between you two, and glares hardly at you.  
  
"I hope you know what you've gotten yourself into Tobin,” he says threateningly, but it doesn't faze you.  
"And what would that be?" You say as you cross your arms.  
"Alex is mine and you stand no chance against me, do you understand? If you so much as touch her I'll have your head."  
"You'll have to get through me before you even think about touching Tobin, pretty boy,” Julie steps up next to you, shoving her face into his aggressively.  
  
You watch his confidence drop for a moment, knowing what the both of you can do, but quickly catches himself.  
  
He pumps his chest out a little, "I'd like to see you try and stop me."  
"Yeah? I'd like to see you try and hurt one of us because that's what real mean do right? Beat women?"  
He smirks nastily, "Yes, because you have no rights, and you shouldn't even be allowed to look at the princesses. You're women, nothing but bodies for men to use and throw around."

“And how do you think the king will feel about that mindset when it comes to who gets his daughters’ hands?”  
  
His words infuriate you, you've been bullied and picked on enough about being a girl before, you're not going to let him stop you from doing what you want. You've already gotten Alex to trust you, mostly. She hasn't allowed anyone else to call her Alex so you're guessing that's a big step. She won't even look at Servando without disgust written all over her face, it's quite pathetic that he's even trying to threaten you. But now you're angry, and you're about to get a beating into Servando and his little pack but Julie's hand on your chest stops you.  
  
"I don't think you understand who you're threatening Servando,” she whispers, pulling you away, "And quit glaring at me like you want to kill me Nima"  
  
You chuckle as Julie yells back, but you didn't expect Nima to yell back.  
  
"I'll win her over you, you ugly witch!"  
  
You close your eyes and bite your lip as Julie stops next to you. This isn't going to end pretty, you know it.  
  
"I'm sorry, I could have sworn I heard you call me an ugly witch,” you know she's giving him a chance to correct his statement.  
But he doesn't, "Yeah, that's what I said. Are you gonna do something about it?"  
  
You both turn around and face him, watching as the rest of the men slowly back away with wide eyes.  
  
"I'll stomp your scrawny ass into the ground you wimp,” she barks angrily, marching right up to him and grabbing his collar.  
"You wouldn't even think about it,” he smirks just like Servando does, but the group is long gone by now. "I'll burn you at the stake before you get a knife to my throat"  
"You and what army?"  
  
You can't help but laugh as Nima smiles and looks behind him, finding nothing but an empty hall. His mouth shuts and he tries to shrink away from Julie.  
  
"That's what I thought,” Julie pushes him away and he stumbles to the ground, "Go find a better crowd you coward"  
  
////  
  
"Where's Kelley?"  
"With Hope."  
"What do you mean with Hope?"  
"Said she broke some arrows during training and needed them to be fixed, Hope’s father is out of town for tonight so I doubt she'll be back."  
  
You groan heavily.  
  
"She's the only one who knows what room Tobin is in!"  
  
This gains Christens attention, causing her to sit up straight and raise an eyebrow at you.  
  
"Why do you need to know where Tobin is staying?"  
"Why do you think you imbecile?"  
  
She rolls her eyes and turns her attention back to the book in her lap. You start pacing around the room, trying to remember anyone else who would know.  
  
"Stephanie?"  
"She stays in another part of castle, you really think she'll know?"  
"Would father know?"  
"Pretty sure he doesn't even want us associating ourselves with them"  
"WHO WOULD KNOW THEN?"  
"Don't raise your voice at me!" She sighs and grabs you by the arm, dragging you out of the library.  
"Christen where are we going?"  
"To Tobin’s room", she states plainly.  
"Wait you know? You little piece of-"  
"Don't you dare"  
  
You shut your mouth quickly, picking up your pace so you don't have to drag behind her. She walks down the steps to the main hall, quickly walking down the left side of the pillars and taking a sharp left into a dimly lit hall.  
  
"I didn't even know this hall existed", you mumble to yourself, because you really didn't.  
  
Christen stays quiet, trudging up the stone spiral staircase. You go up at least four sets before you finally walk into a hall with wooden floors. She takes a right down the hall and stops near the end of it.  
  
"Here you are, enjoy yourself,” she winks at you and walks off, leaving you alone in front of the door.  
  
The number 17 is carved above the torch next to the handle, giving off a low light in the hall. You have to take a deep breath before knocking on the door. Just the thought of Tobin and her soft brown eyes gets you worked up.  
  
"Écuetor, I already told you I don't know where their rooms are- oh,” the door swings open and Tobin’s lazy voice startles you.  
  
She's wearing black robes with red stitching, her hair flowing loosely down her face. She looks so casual its almost weird.  
  
You don't know what to do but smile as you stare at her, "Uh, hi."  
She smiles back, perfect teeth shining back at you, "Bonjour, madam!"  
You laugh as she bows slightly at you, "I said you could call me Alex."  
"Of course, Alex,” she says teasingly but you already love the way your name rolls off her tongue.  
  
She opens the door up more and motions for you to walk in, which you do as you push back your hair. She pulls a chair out from under the table for you, kicking the door shut with her foot.  
  
"Well, you look beautiful tonight,” she says to you and you blush.  
"So do you."  
  
She smiles again, sitting across from you at the table.  
  
"So what brings you here tonight?"  
  
You open your mouth to respond but nothing comes out. You don't actually know why you're here, something inside of you was just pulling you towards Tobin. And now that you're here you feel almost content, but you don't know why.  
  
"Alex?"  
"Hmm?"  
  
She raised her eyebrow at you and you realize she's still waiting for an answer.  
  
"Is Servando bothering you at all?" It's the first thing that comes out of your mouth, and judging by the way her brows furrow and she stiffens slightly, you probably should've thought a little harder.  
"The enculé and his little group tried to threaten me after dinner,” she mumbles, angrily standing and pacing slightly, "Who does he think he is? He can't just go around making threats like that. And then Nima had the stupidity to threaten Julie!"  
  
You grow slightly confused as she continues rambling angrily, her words quickly shifting from English to French. She sputters phrases out like its nothing, and you're even more confused because you thought she grew up learning English.  
  
You stand up and walk towards you, putting your hands on her shoulders once she finally faces you again, "Tobin, look at me."  
  
She stops talking immediately, her gaze snapping to yours.  
  
"One, I don't understand anything you're saying. Two, I'll see to it that he's taken care of.”  
"No!" You flinch slightly. "Sorry, it's just, if you go and tell him to stop it'll make me seem weak. And I'm not weak so I'd rather just deal with him"  
  
Her gaze drops to the floor and you smile sadly, not liking the sudden shift in her mood. You know she comes from a hard background, and an even harder family. America hasn't been the nicest to its citizens, last time you heard, and the slight distant gaze Tobin has when she's not focused tells you a lot.  
  
You sit her back down at the table, giving her a mutual look as if to say "you can trust me". She nods, taking a deep breath and suddenly you're spending the entire night talking with her about both of your pasts.  
  
////  
  
You sigh once the warm water hits your skin, sinking farther into the large tub. You can feel all the muscles in your body relax, which isn't really a surprise nowadays. The war has been doing a number on everyone in the town, even though it hasn't officially started. It probably won't for a few more months, your uncle is a peaceful man and he'll do everything in his power to keep it from happening.  
  
"Jeez Kel, you're super tense."  
  
Hopes hands rub over your back and shoulders, slowly unknotting the tension in your body. You sigh again, feeling her slip in with you. She pulls you closer to her by your hips, gentle hands running over your smooth skin.  
  
"If I had known you'd do this I would've come while your father was away in Italy last month,” you say, leaning back so your back is against her chest.  
"Well last month we hadn't had sex yet so…"  
"Oh of course! The unholyness that filled that wonderful night!"  
  
Hope laughs at your sarcasm, placing light kisses across your shoulders. You move the back of your head to the crook of her neck, leaning to the side so that your lips are touching her jawline.  
  
"Kelley,” Hope warns, but you continue to pepper kisses along her jawline, trailing down to her neck.  
"Your father isn’t home, what's the problem?"  
  
She's silent for a second, but eventually gives in as her hands start trailing from your back to your lower stomach.  
  
You twist around in her arms, placing both of your hands on her shoulders as you lean in. You sigh happily once your lips touch, moving perfectly together. You smile against her as her hands trail lower and lower, eventually getting to where you want them to be. You practically moan into her mouth, deepening the kiss until you're both fighting for dominance.  
  
You know you're in for a night of venturing each other's bodies again.  
  
////  
  
You hesitantly knock on the door, clasping your hands together as you wait for it to open.  
  
But it doesn't, and you knock again but nothing.  
  
"What in the-"  
  
You knock once more, growing slightly agitated and still nothing happens. Your brows furrow as you look down the empty hall for any sign of anyone being around. But all the doors all closed, it's silent and it looks deserted.  
  
You huff out a breath, stomping down the hall and down the staircase. You were hoping you'd get to talk to Julie tonight but that doesn't seem to be happening. And there's no way you're venturing the entire castle just to find her, you don't want to seem desperate.  
  
You're angrily walking down the hall, about to turn into the grand hall but a body crashes into you. You both stumble back, but strong arms grab onto you and keep you from falling to the ground.  
  
"Oh lord, I am so sorry Christen!"  
  
Your eyes burst open at Julies voice, she's holding tightly onto your waist, her face only inches away from yours. You blush deeply as you try and control your breathing, staring into Julie's deep blue eyes isn’t helping your beating heart.  
  
"It's fine, not your fault,” you manage to get out as you push hair out of your face.  
"Well, it wasn't yours either."  
  
Julie smiles at you, slowly moving her hands from your waist. You almost want to tell her to keep them there for fear your knees might buckle under your weight.  
  
"It's getting late, princess. You should be getting some rest."  
You laugh, "I'm not the one who was fighting today."  
  
You look closely at her healed lip, noticing a little slit where the blood was running. Her face seems mostly healed, Stephanie must have really put her energy into her magic.  
  
"Yes well I'm a knight, we learn to run on little sleep, but you're royalty. Royalty deserves the rest,” Julie whispers to you and suddenly the air grows thick.  
  
There's a look in her eyes, an emotion you can't place for the life of you. You don't know what to do besides gaze into her eyes in silence.  
  
"Do you know what time it is?" You ask suddenly.  
"Quarter past ten I believe. Why?"  
  
You smile, grabbing Julie's hand and dragging her to the other side of the grand hall and past the large wooden doors.  
  
////  
  
"Uhm, Christen?"  
  
She hushes you, carefully looking around as the two of you continue down the hall. You stop at one of the intersecting halls, loosely sliding your hand into Christens. She smiles softly at you and you smile back, continuing down the hall until you come to a hidden door. It's hidden behind one of the large tapestries. You carefully push it back and she leads you inside. The staircase wraps up a couple flights, opening out into a terrace that overlooks the town. A window is placed on the left side of the terrace, the moonlight filtering in and creating a pale design on the walls and the floor. You can see the mountains in the distance, illuminated by the torches of the townspeople.  
  
"It's beautiful isn't it?" Christen's voice is just below a whisper.  
"Yeah, it is,” but you're not looking at the view.  
  
She turns her head to look at you and you swear she's an angel standing in front of you. The moonlight bounces off her skin and illuminates her green eyes, a slight aura glowing around her. Your breath catches in your throat as you stare at her, her grin speeding your heart up.  
  
Suddenly, almost on cue, some people on the street start playing a soft tune that makes this scene even more romantic than it already is. You smile, holding your hand out to Christen.  
  
"Oh, I- I don't know how to-", she starts stuttering and you just smile at her.  
"You're a princess and you don't how to dance?" You ask incredulously as she nods no, "Well then, I'm making it my duty to teach you."  
"Julie you don't have to-"  
  
You silence her by grabbing her hand and pulling her close to you. She gasps once your hips touch, your hand slinking around her waist while the other slides into her hand.  
  
"Just follow my lead,” you whisper assuringly, slowly stepping in time with the music.  
  
It takes a second, but eventually Christen's steps in sync with you, both of you dancing slowly to the music. She loosely wraps her arm around your neck and moves impossibly closer, her scent of roses taking over your breath. You try and regulate your breathing, but she's so close to you and you can't do anything but take her all in.  
  
"God, I've only known you for a day and I already feel like I've known you my whole life."  
  
Your blood runs cold, you don't know what to say or do and now she's staring at you and you've stopped dancing. It's just you and her standing there and, jeez, you really need to say something before she runs off.  
  
"Past life maybe?" You grin slightly.  
Her face grows much more serious and it kind of makes you nervous, "I think I'd remember someone like you in my past life."  
  
You're stunned to silence, you didn't even know Christen felt that way. You didn't even know her words would have this kind of effect on you.  
  
You breathe deeply, "Yeah, I would've remembered you too."  
  
You lean forward slowly, giving her a chance to move away but she just grabs the back of your neck and brings you closer. The moment your lips meet there's fireworks going off inside of you, you feel like you can't stand on your own at all. Her hands thread through your hair as the kiss grows deeper and somehow you end up leaning against the edge of the terrace. Your leg ends up between her thighs, your stomach drops at the sound of Christen moaning into your mouth.  
  
You really don't want to take this too far for fear of ruining everything, but Christen just keeps kissing you and God is she a good kisser. Her hands keeping running through your hair and honestly it's kind of just edging you on more.  
  
"Wait,” Christen pulls away, breathless, and you internally thank whatever God is out there.  
"You thinking the same thing?"  
"Yeah, sorry, got carried away a little,” she laughs nervously, playing with the neck of your shirt.  
"If you want to-", you try and assure her but she stops you.  
"No, no I haven't felt this way and a long time and I don't want to mess it up."  
"Hey,” you lift her chin so that she's looking at you, "I'm here for a reason, remember?"  
  
She nods and smiles, pulling you closer into a tight hug.  
  
"God, what have we gotten ourselves into?"  
You smile, "Something that's worth the fight"

////

You’re lying in bed struggling to fall asleep when you see something move out of the corner of your eye. It scares you because you think someone wants to start the brewing war early and they’ve mistaken you for one of the princesses. That’s one of the downsides to your job as a handmaiden, you can be mistaken for the princesses at any given moment. When you see it again, you sit up and instinctively reach for the dagger on your nightstand. However, your wrist is grabbed by someone else’s hand and it takes all of your being not to scream. You’re glad you didn’t scream, though, when you look up and see familiar white robes with blue trim.

“Steph, what the hell?!” you yell in a whisper.

The brunette removes her hood to reveal a dorky smile plastered on her face. Magical girlfriends could be so annoying sometimes.

“Surprise!” she responds and you roll your eyes at her.

“I thought you were a German coming to kill me.”

“Nope, no Germans here, only an Englishwoman and a Scott.”

You can’t help it when your face breaks into a smile. Steph is just too cute and loveable for you to stay mad at her for too long. You’re grateful she’s there with you now because you know you’ll be able to sleep well with her there. You move over on your bed so she can lay with you and moments later you’re nuzzling your head into her chest.

You sit there talking with Steph for a while when you she gets an idea. She mutters some words and waves her hand in an arching motion. What trails after them takes your breath away. In the comfort of your bedroom, you’re looking at the stars with the love of your life. You see Steph trace out some constellations with her finger and watch in amazement as the lines solidify to make them more obvious.

She notices you starting to fall asleep after a few minutes and decides to trace out one more constellation in the stars. It’s not one you recognize so you wait until she’s done to ask what it is, but you realize you don’t need to. When the lines solidify you see that she’s drawn a flower. She waves away the other stars so that it’s just the flower floating above your heads before reaching up and grabbing the flower. In her hands, the flower that was once light is now a real flower that she hands you.

“I don’t think I’ll ever get used to you doing that.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Big things are going to happen next chapter.


	4. Chapter Four

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tobin and Julie compete in a tournament, Steph uses more magic, Servando is an asshole and a huge secret is revealed

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh boy.

It’s been a week since you and Julie were harassed by Servando, Nima, and their crew and the two of you are starting to get worried. None of the men, for that matter, have really bothered you or looked at you funny. It’s unnerving. Julie told you to just ignore it, and so you do, until the next test.

Today you’re supposed to be dueling on horses and it’s the king who’s making the pairs instead of the princesses. You know who you’re going to get paired with before you even get to the arena, Servando. In all the tests that you’ve gone through you’ve had to deal with him and each time you humiliate him. That’s why you’re so surprised that Servando and his gang haven’t come for you yet. Something big is coming and you can feel it.

Julie is lucky, you think, because Nima is weak and has little experience. Neither of you are sure why he’s still there, but you assume it’s because the princesses’ father wishes to pair him with Christen. You question the king’s thinking since there are much stronger and richer men there than Nima. Julie sees it as an insult to both Nima and the other men.

When you and Julie arrive at the arena, you see the princesses sitting with their father. You look over at Julie to make a comment about Alex but find she’s staring at Christen. She never told you what happened on that night they’d spent together, but she was the happiest you’d ever seen her the next morning. They kept making eye contact and smiling at each other at breakfast. You had to admit that they were sickeningly cute, but you knew you and Alex weren’t any better.

After that night in your room with Alex, you learned a lot about each other. She’s snuck out with Christen on several occasions to live as peasants so they could rule the kingdom better when their father died. That was something that made you like Alex even more. You told her the story of how you and Julie came to be the best knights in the Knights United Academy, scaring all the men who discriminated you along the way. Something about the way she looked at you made you feel like she was starting to like you even more too.

////

You look down at the group of knights joking around in the arena trying to spot the familiar black and red armor of Tobin Heath, but you can’t find her. The dueling is about to start, so you hope she makes it on time to avoid angering your father. You go to tell Christen that you’re about to go find her, but you see her smile and wave at someone down below. Of course Tobin would be standing with Julie over in the corner of the arena. You’re not sure why you didn’t think to look there in the first place since you know the men don’t get along well with them.

Tobin looks good in her full armor. She has her helmet in her hands and her cape is slightly blowing in the wind. It’s cheesy, you know, but she looks so good like that. You’re having a hard time pulling your eyes away from her, but you notice Christen is having the same problem with Julie. You’ve heard her talk about Julie almost as much as you talk about Tobin and you think that Julie could be good for your sister. The only problem is your father.

Christen thinks it’s cruel of your father to invite two women to be tested for your hand then not even consider them as possibilities. You both know he knows that you’re attracted to both sexes, but you both prefer women to men. He probably knows about your infatuation with Tobin and Christen too, and maybe that’s why he’s so set on keeping Nima and Servando. You’re about to ask your father how everyone is ranked when he stands up and starts speaking to the knights below.

“Gentlemen!” he yelled to get their attention. “Today you will be fighting each other while on horses. This will be a tournament of sorts and the last two standing will get to spend a night with my daughters.”

Murmurs sweep through the crowd of men below and you roll your eyes at your father’s final statement. Of course he would use you and Christen as the tournament prize. You’re not sure what exactly you _were_ expecting as the tournament prize, but you pray to whatever is out there that both Tobin and Julie are the final two.

To give yourself assurance, you look down at Tobin. She looks you in the eyes and smirks before winking at you. You have faith that she will be your knight in shining armor and save you from spending a night with one of the men.

////

Nima is glaring at you from the edge of the group of knights and you just smile. After watching the tests for the past few weeks, the king knows better than to put you and Tobin up against Nima and Servando first. He likes them too much to see them knocked out so early on in the tournament.

Instead of Nima, you’re paired with another guy from his group named Oro. When you first met him you were surprised at how nice he was to you and Tobin. He was one of the only men at the castle that didn’t discriminate against you and Tobin, and for that you were grateful. You wonder why he hangs around with Servando.

“Good luck, J,” Tobin says as she pats your shoulder.

“Thanks, Tobs,” You say with a smile. You know Tobin hates that nickname, but you’ve been friends for so long that you know she doesn’t care.

“Never mind, I hope you lose.”

“I’ll win just for you then.”

Both of you are laughing when Oro approaches you two and shakes your hands.

“Good luck to both of you today,” he says with a genuine smile.

“You too, Oro,” the two of you say in unison.

You take one more look up at Christen before you prepare for your fight. She’s looking at you like you’re the only one there and you can’t help but smile at her. How could one human being be so perfect?

Before you know it, you’ve mounted your horse and you’re starting to fight Oro. You might have lost to him if you were facing him in hand to hand combat because of his large muscular build. He towers over you while standing next to each other, but on horses it’s different. It’s easier for you to dismount larger opponents because you know the best ways to use their weight against them. Oro should be easy to handle, and it turns out that he is.

Not even five minutes into the fight do you dismount him. You’re angry at first because you think he’s taken it easy on you, but then you remember that Oro wouldn’t do that to you. Either you’re just that good, or he’s really inexperienced. To avoid becoming super cocky, you assume that he’s just inexperienced.

////

After Julie completely demolishes Oro, you get bored watching everyone else fight. You elect to watch Julie wait to start round two. She’s just sitting there watching Tobin beat her opponent when she catches you staring. You avert your eyes and smile to yourself before looking back over to her. She’s looking at you with a smile on her face and it makes your smile grow impossibly wider. Julie just had that effect on you.

Nima ends up getting knocked out in the first round, something that you were expecting no matter who he went up against. Why your father wanted to pair you with him, you didn’t know, but you did know he wasn’t leaving the castle anytime soon. Servando, however, made it past round one and you felt bad for your sister. You hope, for Alex’s sake, that Tobin or Julie are able to knock him off his high horse.

By the time the quarterfinals roll around, you’re practically falling asleep in your chair. It looks like Alex is doing the same. Both Julie and Tobin have made it, Julie facing Ajax and Tobin facing Servando. The fights are both very intense and make you nervous to watch. If neither Julie nor Tobin win, then both of you and Alex have to suffer a long night with two men you couldn’t care less about. If only one of them win, then one of you gets to have fun while the other suffers. Ajax and Servando can go fuck themselves.

////

The battle with Servando is a long one, but you end up coming out on top. Servando looks like he could kill you right then and there but you’re too happy to care. You get to spend a night with Alex _and_ you humiliated Servando in the process. Nothing has ever felt this good.

Julie ends up being victorious as well, taking down Ajax in what was presumed to be the best battle of the tournament. The two of them are almost equally matched, but Ajax looked like he was about to beat Julie. Only you could tell what was about to happen, because you’ve seen her pull this same trick with the men in America. No one would ever see it coming, no matter how many times she did it.

She took one final hit from Ajax and acted like she was about to fall over. Immediately, Ajax assumed he was victorious and pumped his fists in the air in victory. That was where he went wrong. Julie took him by surprise, springing up and knocking him off his horse with her arm. Everyone was silent as Ajax hit the ground, mostly from shock, but when Julie hopped off her horse the crowd went wild. Even if the two of you were women, you both knew how to fight, and men just wanted a good show.

You look up and see Alex smiling down at you. She and Christen are probably relieved that they don’t have to spend the night with Servando and Ajax. You and Julie are relieved too because you’ve finally proved to the men that you’re just as good, or maybe better, than they are. It feels good to know that.

////

Even though this is your first one, you hate tournament day. Kristie was off with Alex and Christen all morning to help them get ready for the day, so you didn’t get to meet up for breakfast like usual. Then, when the princesses are done and you think you’re able to see Kristie, one of the King’s assistants comes to tell you to be ready for patients. Being a healer sucks.

You’re only on your fifth knight of the day and you already feel drained. The king doesn’t quite understand the toll that your magic takes on you, especially healing magic. Cuts and bruises were easy, taking small amounts of energy, it was the bone healing that took up a lot of energy. The bone healing, mixed with healing lots of minor injuries, quickly become overwhelming. Five more knights later, and you feel like you’re going to collapse.

It feels like you haven’t eaten or slept and days and you wish you could just lie down and sleep forever. To make matters worse, you’re only half way done with your patients. Accepting the ones that are seriously injured first, you continue healing anyway. You’ve just finished with your eleventh patient when Kristie, the wonderful angel that she is, comes in with a plate overflowing with food. She knows how much healing affects you and you’re so grateful to have her as your girlfriend.

“I brought you something,” she says with a smile as she sets the plate down on your worktable. There’s a various assortment of meats, cheeses, bread, and some vegetables.

“Thanks.” You somehow find enough energy to smile back at her and a frown appears on her face as you wave over your next patient.

“Steph, you need to take a break.”

You ignore her because the glares the knights are giving you are much scarier that she could ever be (but don’t tell her that). However, your willpower not to cave and devour the food on the plate beside you is starting to fade with your energy. After your twelfth patient, your knees buckle beneath you and Kristie catches you as you fall.

“Stephanie McCaffrey, you are going to sit down and regain your energy before you take care of anyone else!” Kristie scolds you, sending away the other knights. None of them needed any real medical attention anyway.

All you can do is nod as she sits down on the bench by your worktable, pulling you down with her. You sit next to her as she takes the fork from the plate of food and stabs a piece of carrot, holding it up for you to eat.

“You don’t have to feed me,” you whine. You’re glad all the knights have left because your accent becomes very heavy when you’re tired. Only Kristie is allowed to hear that.

“Yes I do,” she protests, putting the piece of carrot in your mouth.

Finally, you decide you’re too tired to be stubborn and let her feed you.

“Next time take a break before you nearly collapse, okay?”

“Okay.”

////

As soon as you see Servando, Nima, and their gang coming down the stairs straight for you, you know you’re screwed. You and Julie look at each other with worry on your faces. Oro is nowhere to be seen, but Ajax seems to have taken his place. They all look very unhappy and you get the feeling that you and Julie should be running in the opposite direction, but by the time you think of that, it’s too late.

Two of Servando’s men have grabbed you by the arms and force you onto your knees. Two more have done the same to Julie, Ajax being one of them. You fight back, but it’s useless because you’re outnumbered and there’s no way anyone but Alex and Christen would help you after today’s tournament. At this point you just hope Servando doesn’t mess you up too bad before your date with Alex tonight.

Servando walks up to you and spits in your face. You’re angry, but you take it because you know that he will never end up with Alex.

“It seems that you have stolen my princess,” he says to you in a taunting tone. He kicks you in the gut before responding again. “I’d like her back.”

You look up at him and smirk. “You can’t take back something that wasn’t yours in the first place.” This earns you a punch to the jaw and you can taste the blood pooling in your mouth.

“Why so pissy, Serv? She won that fight fair and square,” Julie comments. “It’s your own fault that you’ve embarrassed yourself over and over again.”

Servando nods at Ajax, who punches Julie in the face. She spits the blood in her mouth on his shoes and smiles up at him.

“I could do this all day, buddy.”

This earns her several kicks to the gut and another punch to the face.

Servando turns his attention back to you. “You’re wrong to think that you’ll have any chance with Alex. I’ll have her hand in marriage, even if I have to kill you.”

“Good luck with that,” you respond.

He doesn’t even bother talking anymore, taking out all of his aggression on you in the form of kicks and punches. So much for looking good for your date tonight.

You think you’re going to pass out when Servando and his men suddenly drop you and Julie and start running. They’re yelling about something, but your ears are ringing too much for you to hear what’s happening. Before you know it, you’re staring into the eyes of Alex Morgan herself.

////

To say that you were pissed at Servando would be an understatement. You ignore Christen’s concerns about needing to be checked out for any injuries and tell her that you’re fine. She opts for taking you to her room instead. As soon as the two of you get there she locks the door and sits down on her bed while you pace back and forth along the edge of her bed.

“You can say what’s on your mind if you need to. You look you’re about to explode,” Christen tells you. Her calm tone makes you feel bad for yelling.

“I just can’t believe Servando would think he could do that to Tobin!” You wring your hands as your pacing speeds up and your anger just pours out of you. “That little _bitch_! Thinking he’s so much better just because we’re women!” You can hear that your accent has slipped through but you don’t pay it much attention. “I can’t believe him! Er drohte sogar unser leben nur zu nehmen, so dass er mit Alex sein könnte und wer weiß, wer sie am ende würde!”

You don’t notice what’s happened until you see Christen staring at you with a horrified look on her face. Not even Tobin knows that you’re not American, well not fully American.

“You- you’re German?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What Julie said translates to:
> 
> He even threatened to take our lives just so that he could be with Alex and who knows who you'd end up with!

**Author's Note:**

> This is probably not very historically accurate but whatever.


End file.
